Pokemon Mystery Dungeon : Chronicles of Light
by peony-princess
Summary: In a world where an impending darkness threatens to vanquish the light, one lost soul awakens in the Forgotten Forest with little memory of anything other than his name. Accompanied by a strange explorer with an ancient white stone, the two set their sights on finding purpose and discovering the secrets hidden within the shadows of the past.
1. Prologue : A Lost Soul

_Macer, my lost soul, you must awaken..._

_You are the light..._

_The only light that can hope to resurrect this fragile world from _

_it's inevitable fate within a realm of darkness..._

_A world without light is a world lost,_

_you must find your light, and be careful not to lose yourself in the shadows._

_Open your eyes, let your memories guide you..._

_And bring back the light into the world._

_I believe in you, Macer, you are my light._


	2. Chapter 1 : An Unlikely Alliance

Sunlight flickered through the maze of leaves and wooden branches perched above the grassy earth of the Forgotten Forest. Beneath the vast ocean of pale blue and scattered clouds, the flowers cradled an unfamiliar life residing in a bed of soft grass and drops of golden sunlight on the forest floor. The faint voice of the wind carried forgotten melodies into the quiescent air, filling the forest with ancient life. Beneath the trees, a small white and red figure resided under the protection of fallen leaves and gentle shadows discarded by the body of the giant oak he rested beside.

The earth around his fragile body seemed to radiate a dull light, floating thoughtlessly into the air as it faded from sight. Silence filled the empty forest, a calm void in the center of the trees where no life dared to venture. All except the guardian of the enlarged woodland coppice, who's petite emerald body hung in the air among the lusterless light emanating from the lifeless creature below. Her humble, lucent wings kept her floating steadily in the motionless air, allowing the light to caress her soft skin and fade into the shadows surrounding her. Sapphire eyes fell upon the figure beneath her, studying the delicate construction of the body surrounded by an ocean of flowers. With a smile, she lowered herself, hesitating just inches from his unconscious face as she reached outwards, placing her small hands against his skin.

"_Wake up, Macer." _

Her soft voice broke the barren void of silence, filling it with simple words and bringing back life into the empty forest. However, the reserved whisper of her voice was not enough to revive Macer back into the world of the conscious. He still lay transfixed under the trees, light wrapping itself around his still limbs.

"_Macer, there is much to be done, you must awaken now." _

Watching as he stirred, the guardian smiled, placing one of her small hands against his forehead. His pure white and red fur gleamed with the orbs of light surrounding his becalmed body. Silence returned to the small enclosure as the guardian drifted back into the air, her gaze drifting between the slowly waking soul and his fading light. Daintily, she spread her arms wide, allowing the last of the dull light to be absorbed into her modest figure. As she began to turn away, a faint noise drove her attention into the abyss of green and brown beyond the trees. With a half smile she let her gaze rest on Macer's lonely presence once more before quickly disappearing into the safety of the trees above, leaving his body to reside peacefully within the bed of flowers the forest had created.

"_Good luck you lost soul, you will surely need it." _

Macer felt a shadow fall over his lifeless body, the slight coldness reminding him of the partial thoughts hiding within the back of his aching skull. With a sharp intake of summer air, his lungs filled with life and his eyes opened, sapphire orbs darting from endless sky to the ocean of trees surrounding him. As his gaze wandered, it fell innocently upon the source of the chilled shadow residing over his skin, a curious looking creature with intense, golden colored eyes that seemed to contain parts of the sun's fallen rays.

"For a minute there I thought you might have been dead." He folded his blue colored arms over his tanned chest, allowing his wavering shadow to flicker and twitch between beams of fallen sunlight. His muscles were strongly defined, and his tall ears winced at the slightest howl of the soft summer wind, "Good to see you're alive, but what are you doing all the way out in the middle of the Forgotten Forest?"

"The forgotten what?" Macer repeated, using his large claws to rub his throbbing skull, filled with thousands of half thoughts and unfinished memories. He felt dizzy, as if the world around him was dancing and he refused to participate, leaving him left to watch everything spin endlessly in circles around him.

Cocking his head to the side, the creature rolled his sun stained eyes, "Don't tell me you hit your head or something," he sighed unsympathetically, eyes darting to watch a leaf as it fell between them from the large trees towering above, "You really don't know where you are?"

"...I, no, I don't really remember anything actually..." His voice was faint, as if he were distracted by attempting to piece together his thoughts as he spoke, "I mean there was a bright light, and then some strange voices but I-"

"Hm, I think you need to back up." The man held up his paw, "Why don't you start with something simple, like your name?"

"My name..." He repeated, his gaze focused on the broken blades of grass scattered before him within the dried earth. Although it should have been a simple question, Macer wanted to be positive of his answer, because any one of his shattered memories could hold the surely simplistic answer, "My name's Macer."

"Good, at least you can remember that much." The strange man grinned, reaching out his paw to help Macer up from the earth beneath them. The ground was covered in flowers of all colors, filling the air with the soft smell of sweet nectar, "I'm Valor. It's nice to meet you."

"Normally I'd tell you the pleasure's all mine, but I'm really not sure this time." The smaller man laughed, allowing Valor to help lift him from the forest floor. His sapphire gaze wandered beyond the scope of the surrounding trees and fell into the abyss of green and pale golden sunlight.

"You said there was a light?" Valor asked, adjusting the bag hanging over his shoulder.

Macer returned his stare to the man before him, "Yeah, a bright one... But I-"

"That's why I came out here, actually." Valor interrupted, "Earlier there was some kind of weird light show going on out here and I decided to come by and check it out. By the time I got here all that was left was some butterflies and your sorry ass sleeping under the trees."

"There were lights?" He repeated, "What were they from?"

His voice sounded suddenly impatient, but Valor dismissed his anxiousness with a huff, "I already told you, by the time I got out here all I found was you taking a beauty nap all by yourself."

Slightly unnerved, Macer scowled, "Well jeez, no need to be so helpful." his tone forced Valor's lips upwards into a grin, as if he were amused by the smaller pokemon's sense of defiance and apparent lack of patience.

"Hah, you're pretty feisty, aren't you?" he laughed, studying Macer's vexed expression as he growled silently, hissing curses at the blue pokemon from under his breath. The forest seemed to brighten as the clouds drifted away from the sun, filling the small enclosure with a sudden burst of sun beams, shrouding Macer's fur in a layer of discolored golden as he focused his gaze towards Valor while he spoke, "Where exactly are you headed?"

For a moment, Macer paused. The realization dawned upon him that he had no idea where he was, nowhere to go, and no one to go back to. A sudden emptiness filled his mind, and his heart began to race at the notion that he had nothing. Not even memories.

"...I don't have anywhere to go." He admitted sullenly, casting his stare downwards into the grassy earth beneath their feet. For a moment he allowed his focus to dance between the flowery galaxy sprouting from the ground where he once lay, glistening colors crawling up from the depths of the dirt to rest gracefully among the ocean of grass and trees on the surface, "I don't even know who I am."

With a frown, Valor looked away toward the labyrinth of leaves surrounding them, "Well, there's a village not far from here, and there's a guild there that might be able to help you out." He explained, scratching his head softly as he spoke. Macer looked up, catching Valor's golden stare as he listened intently, "I'm heading back that way to get some supplies if you wanted to come with me."

"It's not like I really have too many other options." He shrugged, glancing between the trees ahead of them into the endless greenery sprouting from the earth.

"Good, then you can carry the bag." Valor smiled, pulling the bag from his shoulder and tossing it toward Macer, watching it slam against his red and white chest with a _thud._ As Macer wrapped his claws around the tattered bag, he let out a low growl, resting his sapphire glare against Valor's back as he turned toward the trees, "We should get going though, it's not a good idea to stay in the forest when the sun goes down."

Rolling his eyes, Macer slung the heavy bag over his shoulder as Valor had down, taking his first few steps across the grassy enclosure while the sunlight flickered into thin beams around him, "What the hell do you have in this thing? It weighs more than a bucket of wailord..."

"Quit complaining or I'll leave you out here to starve." Valor threatened, ears twitching as he listened to the plethora of noises dawning from the living forest surrounding them, making his way back through the maze in which he once emerged. Carefully he guided Macer through the shrubbery, stepping over fallen branches and avoiding any helpless flowers scattered along their path, "It's a long way back, you never know what you might need."

Catching his foot on an overgrown root, Macer narrowly caught himself from crashing into the dry earth, "I guess..." he scowled, turning his attention to the vast blue sky above their heads. The puzzle of broken clouds hanging in front of the sun created streaks of pale sunlight to fall between the branches, draping itself over leaves and flower petals, "So, what exactly _is _a guild and how are they going to help me?"

"Hm, how should I explain a guild? I guess you could say that they're an organization that strives to better the world in a couple different ways." He began, pausing for a moment to allow Macer to catch up as they walked, "They're divided into three factions : Rescue, Trade, and Exploration. Each faction has it's own leader and members, focused on specific tasks toward bettering both the guild and world I guess."

"Okay, but how can they fix my problem? It's not like they can give me back my memories." Macer seemed skeptical, adjusting the strap against his shoulder.

Valor stepped over a small stream in their path, careful not to get his feet wet, "No, of course not, but guild members are dedicated to helping pokemon in need, and they might be able to point you in the right direction if anything. They have a surprising amount of knowledge nestled away within their walls and who knows, maybe they can tell you what happened."

"How do you know so much about guilds?" Macer asked, taking a few quick steps so that he was back beside Valor. He watched Valor's golden eyes wander from the path to the trees towering above them, painted with sunlight and draping shadows over their thin path, "Are you part of one?"

"Not exactly..." He sighed, averting his gaze from Macer's curious stare. Taking a sharp breath he shrugged, "Me and the guild have a difficult relationship, I have something they want, they have information I want... But, they've always scorned me for self exploring, so they refuse to work with me until I join them."

Macer said nothing for a moment, trying to sort the sudden intake of so much information. He wrapped his claws around the bag strap pressed against his chest, gripping it tightly as they moved through the shrubbery, "Then why don't you just join them? It sounds to me like you're just being stubborn, which from what I've seen already isn't very unlikely..."

"Because they continuously take credit away from explorers who make incredible discoveries, all for _the good of the guild_" he barked, cutting the air in front of him swiftly with one of his hands. Macer flinched at the sudden outburst, carefully avoiding a row of lavender colored flowers as he walked, "They're just greedy. I don't want to be a part of something like that. I would rather explore on my own and find the answers to my own questions, I don't need their help."

"I guess not..." Macer shrugged, watching as Valor slowed his pace approaching a small stream. His blue tail swung as he walked, catching beams of sun as they dripped from the branches, "But as long as they help me out, I don't really mind."

"Sure, just don't let them trick you into anything. They're good at that." Valor warned, reaching out his hand to help Macer across the small creak filled with stones and fallen leaves. Taking his hand, Macer let his companion pull him across the stream with a jump, letting out a sharp breath as he landed safely on the other side. The ground beneath his feet was damp and slick, staining his plain white fur a dull brown.

Frowning as he stepped out of the mud, Macer rolled his ultramarine eyes, "Yeah, yeah, I'll be careful. If we ever make it there..."

"Don't whine so much, we're not _that_ far." Valor chuckled, turning his head back as he watched Macer follow along the dwindling forest path they walked. Flowers littered the space around their feet, and large roots pushed their way out of the solid earth, cutting across the grassy path. As he turned his focus back to the space in front of him, Valor sighed, a smile tugging at his lips once more as he listened to Macer complain about numerous issues while they moved, his insistent voice pressing threats into the back of Valor's head.

"...And if you make me carry this bag any further, Arcues knows I'll probably collapse again and you'll have to drag both our asses to the guild." He growled, adjusting the bag's strap once more, watching the sunlight fall gracefully around them, letting the wind rustle his fur as they walked further into the oblivion of golden and green trees.

"_Perhaps you'll need more luck than I first anticipated..."_


End file.
